Connected
by disneyevilqueen
Summary: Emma and Regina drink a potion connecting their emotions to each other. Will this bond them closer, or tear them apart?
1. Connected

**The moment you've all been waiting for has arrived. Connected is here! Just so things don't get confusing, this universe is a combo of things from 365 and new stuff. You can read "365 Days of Swan Queen" if you want to know what I did with this the first time, but you don't have to. This started as a prompt that I saw online and readers asked for it to become its own story, so here we go!**

 **To also get rid of confusion about timeline, this is taking place after the whole Evil Queen thing, but before the Black Fairy mess.**

 **As usual, I don't own any OUAT characters. Although I really wish I did.**

* * *

Regina thought that the idea was ridiculous, but Emma kept insisting. Over and over again. Eventually, Regina left the living room and escaped up to their bedroom. There was no way she was going to let Emma win this one.

Unfortunately for Regina, Emma followed her upstairs. "Why won't you even consider it?" she demanded. "You can't deny that it's a good idea."

"To connect my emotions to yours?" Regina asked. "How in the world does that sound like a good idea?"

Emma sighed, calming down. "Because then I can know if you're hurt. Think of all the chaos we could have avoided if I had known that someone was attacking you!"

Regina shook her head. "You and I both know that your magic connects to your emotions. If you're feeling mine, who knows what your magic will do."

"What could you possibly be feeling that would make my magic go haywire?" Emma asked. She grew even more concerned when Regina just shook her head and didn't answer. "Gina?"

"There are things that I feel and go through that I don't want you to know," Regina said, sighing. "Look, just forget this. Gold was dumb to plant this idea into your head anyway."

Emma rolled her eyes. "I asked about it. It's not like he randomly started the conversation."

Regina waved her hand dismissively. "It doesn't matter who started it, I'm ending it and all mentions about it. It's not happening, so let it go."

"No, I'm not going to let it go," Emma said firmly. "It works both ways. Maybe I want you to know when I'm in trouble."

"No," Regina said, walking out of the room.

Emma groaned before dramatically plopping onto the bed. It wasn't even that hard to do. Gold had given her the potion for it, and all they had to do was drink while holding hands. Easy enough.

The problem was that, for some reason, Regina was completely against the idea. Emma couldn't figure out why, besides having her privacy of emotions invaded, but it wasn't like they hadn't shared emotions before. Many nightmares led to many talks.

Sighing, Emma got off of the bed and went back downstairs. She wanted to have this issue resolved before Henry got home. He hated when they argued over anything.

Regina was in her study, flipping through one of her spell books. But Emma knew that she wasn't really reading it. Her eyes weren't even following the words on the page. Emma cleared her throat, alerting Regina to her presence.

"What?" Regina asked, not looking up from her book. "Come to tell me again and again how ridiculous I am?"

"No," Emma said softly. She walked over to Regina's desk and sat down in front of it. "But I want to know why you won't agree to it."

Regina sighed, but refused to look at Emma. "I just don't want to."

"Regina," Emma said. "Please just tell me what's going on. Why don't you want to do this?"

Finally, Regina looked up at Emma. "There's no privacy. Everything I feel, you'll know. Every fear, every time I look at Zelena and feel this uncontrollable anger, you'll know."

"But every time you're happy, or excited, I'll feel that too," Emma said. "It's not all bad."

"Why are you so determined to do this?" Regina asked. "Why do you want to do it so badly?"

"Because I can't protect you if I don't know you're in trouble," Emma said. "Every time that you would leave the house, I had this awful fear that something was going to happen to you. And I wouldn't know if it did because I can't feel your emotions. Please."

Regina sighed and bit her lip before groaning. "Okay. Fine. We can do it."

* * *

"Last chance to back out," Emma teased, squeezing Regina's hand.

"You keep suggesting it, and I'm going to back out," Regina said, glaring at Emma.

Emma just laughed. "Sorry. Trying to diffuse the obvious tension." She let go of Regina's hand and opened the potion bottle, then grabbed Regina's hand again. "Ready?"

Regina took a deep breath before nodding. "Let's do this."

Emma nodded before taking a drink, then handed the bottle to Regina who also took a drink. Both women shuddered at the same time as the potion coursed through their systems.

"Well?" Regina asked. "Is it supposed to work right away?"

Emma shrugged. "I wish I knew. But I'm not feeling anything, so my guess is that it takes awhile. Let's just wait."

"Okay," Regina said, letting go of Emma's hand. "Let's not say anything to Henry. At least not until we know that it-"

Emma and Regina's eyes both widened at the same time. "There it is," Emma said. She smiled and laughed as she felt emotions that weren't hers. "This is so cool."

Regina tried to keep a straight face, but ended up laughing anyway. "Yes, it is very cool."

Both women jumped as the doorbell rang. Regina looked at the clock in confusion. "Who in the world would be coming over?"

Emma shrugged, following her to the front door. She hung back as Regina opened the door, revealing Snow on the other side.

"Hi," Snow said awkwardly, bouncing Neal in her arms.

"Hello," Regina said slowly. "What are you doing here?"

"I know this is last minute, but I was wondering if you would be able to watch Neal tonight," Snow said. "You and Emma that is."

Regina glanced back at Emma, who nodded at her. But Regina knew better. She could feel Emma's emotions, and they were saying the opposite of that nod.

"I actually think that we're going to have a date night," Regina said apologetically. She almost gasped as she felt the overwhelming love that Emma was throwing her way. It was thanks to years of training that she managed to hide the noise.

"No problem," Snow said. "Have a good date night!" She turned and left, cooing to Neal the whole time she was walking.

"Isn't he too old for the cooing?" Emma asked, coming to stand next to Regina.

Regina shrugged. "I cooed to Henry for quite a long time. Makes you feel more connected."

"Connected," Emma said, chuckling. "I'd say that's what we are now. If you know what I mean."

"I do," Regina said, laughing. "But thank you for clarifying thoroughly."

Emma smiled at Regina. "You know what I can feel from you more than anything?"

Regina looked at Emma, curiosity written all over her face. "Anger?"

"No," Emma scolded gently. "You're not all made of anger, you know. What I feel more than anything is love. It's radiating off of you, like an aura."

Regina laughed. "I think that's your fault."

Emma smiled before kissing her. "I'll gladly take that blame."


	2. Intervention

It had been a week since Emma and Regina had connected their emotions, and so far neither woman really minded it. In fact, it was making their relationship much easier. Arguments happened less frequently because they could feel the other one's feelings on whatever they were talking about. And Emma teased Regina for it relentlessly.

"So, you're admitting I was right," Emma said, smirking. She popped a fry in her mouth, chuckling as Regina rolled her eyes.

"Don't ruin our lunch with such silly statements," Regina said sarcastically.

Emma just laughed. "I was right, and there's nothing you can do about it. You might as well admit that it was a good idea."

"What was a good idea?" Snow asked, sliding into the booth next to Emma. David took a seat next to Regina.

Emma coughed to avoid choking on her fry. The surprise that she was feeling at seeing her parents was multiplied by being mixed with Regina's.

Regina glanced at Emma before turning her attention to Snow and David. "I didn't realize that we had extended an invitation for you to join us for lunch."

Snow shrugged. "We're practically family. So, what was a good idea?"

Emma and Regina looked at each other and rolled their eyes simultaneously. Snow always had to know everyone's business.

"I saw that!" Snow exclaimed, hitting Emma on the arm. "Don't roll your eyes at your mother."

Regina had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. Emma's annoyance at that moment was enough to rival her own every time she saw Snow.

"Look, we really came over here to ask if you would like to stay with us for the night," David said. "You're our daughter and we miss having you at home."

Emma sighed. "I live with Regina and Henry. You guys seemed perfectly fine with it when I was moving in. So where did this come from?"

Snow and David exchanged a look. "You've been in a lot of danger lately," Snow said. "We just want to spend all the time with you that we can."

"I wasn't the one in danger," Emma scoffed. "Regina was the one being targeted by her evil half."

"Actually it was more Henry," Regina said, shrugging.

"It doesn't matter who it was!" Snow interjected, glaring at Emma and Regina. "Just stay with us for one night. Please."

Emma sighed and groaned before nodding. "Fine. But just for tonight."

* * *

Emma laid in bed, staring at the ceiling. She'd already counted sheep, had gone over old case files David had left lying around, and made hot chocolate. To others, all of those things would be used to fall asleep. But for Emma, they were tools to stay awake.

Before moving in with Regina, Emma's sleep had constantly been plagued with nightmares. From her past in the system, to the present with all of the craziness that Storybrooke seemed to attract, Emma could never get to sleep and stay asleep. But Regina kept the nightmares away.

Emma jumped as her phone started vibrating. She picked it up and smiled at seeing Regina's name on the screen before answering. "Hi."

"Hi yourself," Regina said, chuckling. "Why are you so nervous? Is your mother making you participate in a bonding game night?"

"No," Emma said, shuddering at the thought. "I would've been gone too fast for that to happen."

Regina laughed, making Emma instantly feel better and forget about the nightmares that were going to plague her the minute she closed her eyes. "And now you're fine," Regina observed. "Were you worried that I was angry at you for agreeing to stay with your parents?"

"No, not at all," Emma said quickly. "I just can't sleep."

"Ah," Regina said, finally getting what the problem was. "Nightmares."

"Now I can feel you worrying," Emma teased.

Regina rolled her eyes and sighed, even though Emma couldn't see her. "You know, you feeling my emotions is not helping me comfort you any."

Emma laughed. "I know. But it actually is helping. I know that you care."

They stayed on the phone for a few more minutes in comfortable silence before Emma started to drift off. Regina smiled as she heard Emma's breathing begin to even out, and waited a few more minutes until she was sure that Emma was asleep before hanging up and setting her phone on the nightstand. She shook her head at how crazy this all was before curling up and falling asleep.

* * *

Emma woke up the next morning, surprised that she hadn't had any nightmares. And then she remembered Regina's phone call that had coaxed her to sleep.

She got ready for the day, sent Regina a good morning text, and went downstairs for breakfast. David smiled at her as she walked into the kitchen, but the smiled quickly melted from her face as she saw who was sitting and already eating.

"What is he doing here?" Emma asked, glaring at David.

"Um, your mom invited him," David said guiltily. "I'll let her explain."

"Explain what?" Snow asked, walking into the kitchen with Neal on her hip.

"Explain why my ex boyfriend is sitting in the kitchen eating scrambled eggs," Emma snapped. "Why is he here?"

"I can speak for myself you know," Hook said, setting down his fork and turning to Emma. "The least you can do is look at me."

Emma ignored the phone vibrating her hand. Probably just Regina responding to her good morning text. She rolled her eyes before looking at Hook. "Fine. Then you explain why you're here."

"I was invited to stage a sort of intervention," Hook said. "The Evil Queen deal wore all of us down, and we said and did things that we didn't mean. Like breaking up. We didn't mean to do that, did we?"

"We did," Emma said. "We definitely did." She felt her phone vibrate again, indicating another text. Emma took a deep breath, trying to get a handle on her anger. No doubt Regina was feeling it too, and freaking out.

Hook sighed before standing up and grabbing Emma's hand. "Look, Emma, I didn't want to break up. We were good for each other. Yes, we had our rough patches, but every couple has those."

"No," Emma said, pulling her hand out of Hook's. "We were not good for each other. All of the lying, and the fighting, that isn't what makes a good relationship."

"The lying was mostly on your end," Hook accused. "You were always so secretive about everything going on! How was I supposed to handle that?"

David put a hand on Emma's shoulder, getting her attention. "Look, what Hook is trying to say is that he thinks that you guys should give things another go. Just to make sure you didn't make a mistake."

Emma looked at David in shock before glaring at him and everyone in the room. "Is everyone here forgetting that I broke up with him not because of the arguing and lying, but because I fell in love with Regina? I mean, yeah the arguing and stuff wasn't great, but the main reason was because I wanted to date Regina instead. Someone who I do tell everything to and hardly ever fight with. Yes, we fight. But usually it's sparked by us being concerned for the other one, not because we want to control each other."

The room fell silent, no one really knowing what to say to that. Emma shook her head. "I can't believe you guys. I'm leaving."

Snow went to protest, but Emma had already poofed away. To the person she actually wanted to see.

* * *

"Oh thank goodness," Regina breathed, practically running over and hugging Emma tightly. "What in the world was happening? All I could feel was your anger, and you weren't responding to any of my texts."

"My parents and Hook staged an intervention," Emma said, sighing.

Regina pulled away from her in shock. "A what?"

"Intervention," Emma said. "Wanting me to give Hook another chance. Because apparently the recent events led us to say things we didn't mean and do things we didn't want to do. Like break up with controlling boyfriends."

Regina rolled her eyes before hugging Emma again. "You need to let it go and calm down. All of that anger can't be good for your magic. I can feel it begging to be used."

Emma relaxed into Regina's arms and allowed herself to let go of all of the things she wished that she could do to Hook and her parents. She felt Regina smile and kiss the top of her head as the anger seeped out of her system.

"You know, it makes sense," Regina mused. "What they were all trying to do, I mean."

"How?" Emma asked, pulling away from her.

"You were happy," Regina pointed out. "For awhile at least. Your relationship started off weird, but so did ours. They just want to make sure that you made the right choice and that you are happy."

Emma sighed. "I know. But they went about it in the worst way possible. Like, a sneak intervention? Really? I'm not an alcoholic."

Regina laughed. "No, you're not. But would you have honestly agreed to meet with Hook and talk about those things?"

"No," Emma said. She rolled her eyes at Regina's triumphant smirk. "Fine, I see your point. So what do I do?"

"That's up to you," Regina said shrugging. "You can set up a meeting with him on your own terms, or wait for another parental ambush."

"I don't like either of those options," Emma grumbled. She walked into the living room, plopping down on the couch. "Why does this have to be so complicated? I love you, I didn't make a mistake, and I'm happy."

Regina sat next to her and grabbed her hand, squeezing it gently. "Then you need to tell them that. Without being so angry I feel like my insides are going to explode if I don't hit someone. Or something."

Emma laughed. "I'm sorry. I tried to calm down so it wouldn't affect you so badly."

"That failed," Regina said. "Miserably."

"Yeah, yeah, we both know I'm not great at anger management," Emma said. "Fine, I'll set up a meeting with him for tomorrow. For now, I just want to be with you."

Regina smiled. "That can be arranged."


	3. Missing

"New case," David said, dropping a file on Emma's desk. "Little girl went missing. Went to the park with her brother after school, but only he was found."

"Who placed the call?" Emma asked, picking up the case file. She opened it, her heart immediately aching at the smiling picture of the little girl inside. Her phone went off, most likely indicating a concerned text from Regina.

"The little brother did. He saw the car pull up and drive away with her inside," David said, sighing. "So far no one has been able to get anything out of him. He says he doesn't remember anything."

"I can talk to him," Emma said, standing up and closing the file.

David nodded, watching her go. "Emma," he called. She turned around to face him, waiting for some warning about controlling her magic. "Are you going to be okay? I know how kid cases get to you."

Emma smiled at him. "I'll be fine. See you soon." She walked out of the office before he could say anything else, heading down the hall to the interrogation rooms. A little boy shouldn't have to sit in one of those.

She went to open the door when her phone rang, causing her to jump. Pulling it out of her pocket, she smiled at seeing Regina's name. "I'm fine," she said, answering the call.

"Then why are you feeling this overwhelming mix of sadness and anger?" Regina asked. "And so suddenly too, like something happened. Did David say something stupid about Hook again? I swear if he did-"

"He didn't," Emma interrupted, smiling. She had moved on from the whole intervention incident, and both Snow and David agreed to never meddle in her love life again.

Regina sighed in relief. "Then what's going on? Are you okay?"

"There's a new case," Emma said. "Missing little girl."

"Oh," Regina said. "That explains the emotions. And the suddenness."

"I really am fine," Emma said. "But I have to go, I need to talk to the brother to see if he remembers anything."

"Okay," Regina said softly. "Don't hesitate to call. You know that I can feel if you're overwhelmed and I'll just keep pestering you."

Emma laughed. "Yes ma'am. I'll talk to you later." She hung up the phone, a smile plastered onto her face. How Regina managed to make her smile no matter what still amazed her.

Taking a deep breath, Emma walked into the interrogation room. This was going to be a long interview.

* * *

In the end, Emma ended up taking the little boy to Granny's. The interrogation room clearly made him uneasy, and Emma felt like a kid that young shouldn't have to sit in the same room that criminals sat.

She had talked to him for a couple hours before his mom came to pick him up. Emma had barely any clues, but there was no way that she was going to give up hope.

"I thought I told you to call me if you were overwhelmed," Regina scolded gently, sitting across from Emma.

Emma sighed, rubbing her hands over her face. "I don't know what to do. He was so traumatized by the whole thing that he doesn't remember anything at all. No plate, no colors, nothing."

"This is a small town," Regina said, placing her hand over Emma's. "There aren't very many places to hide."

"Really?" Emma asked. "Because I distinctly remember Zelena keeping Rumple prisoner and none of us knew about it."

"That was different," Regina said. "We're looking for a little girl. There's no special place that she has to be hidden to keep her magic away from her. She can't be controlled with a dagger."

"You don't know that," Emma argued. "We don't know anything about her other than that her mom and brother came with her to this world and they live in a cute little house down the street from you."

"Little house?" Regina asked.

Emma looked at her curiously. "Yeah, that's what the kid said. A little house. Why?"

"Emma I built that part of town with huge houses that no one could afford so people would leave me alone," Regina said. "There is no little house."

"He lied?" Emma asked. "Why would he do that?"

Regina shrugged. "Guess you have more digging to do."

Emma smiled before getting up and kissing Regina. "You're amazing. I'll see you later."

* * *

"You know, the point of seeing me later is to actually come home," Regina said, walking into the sheriff's station.

"I can't," Emma said, not even looking up from the pile of papers on her desk. "I looked into the house detail, and you're right. No sign of a little house anywhere near where you live. But why specifically mention it then?"

"To throw you off," Regina said, leaning against the edge of Emma's desk. "I highly doubt that whoever fed him that story expected you to actually question that detail of the story."

Emma groaned and dropped her head onto the stack of papers. "So what, we have a family mastermind who enjoys watching the sheriff's run around town looking for a girl that isn't even missing?"

"I don't know," Regina said. "But what I do know is that you need to come home and sleep."

"I can't, you know that," Emma said. "There's a little girl out there who's probably scared out of her mind. She isn't with her family, so she probably feels alone to top it all off!"

"You cannot solve a case running only of coffee," Regina argued.

"Watch me," Emma said, getting up to go refill her mug. She had no plans at all to leave. That little girl was still out there, and until Emma could return her safely to her home, she wasn't going anywhere.

"I don't want to argue with you," Regina said tiredly, leaning on the doorframe.

"So don't," Emma said, pouring coffee into her mug.

Regina sighed. "I can't let you stay here all night working a case that has no leads or witnesses. You need to sleep. Come back tomorrow morning and start fresh."

Emma was about to protest when she focused on the emotions that her brain was alerting her to. She could feel the worry and desperation coming off of Regina in waves, so strong that Emma wondered how she hadn't noticed it before.

"Fine," Emma said, admitting defeat. She set down her coffee mug, and couldn't help but smile at Regina's happy expression. "You don't need to look so pleased with yourself."

"I don't need to, but I want to," Regina teased. "Now come on. Bedtime."


	4. The Princess and the Goblin

Regina walked into the station, immediately pausing as she walked in the door. Something was off. She couldn't feel any emotions from Emma.

Even when relaxed and not thinking about it, both of them could feel a sense of contentment from the other, or boredom, or just satisfied. But for once, Regina couldn't feel anything. It was like their connection was blocked.

Looking into Emma's office, Regina became even more concerned when she didn't see Emma at her desk. She glanced over, becoming even more confused when she saw David at his desk. The sheriff car and Emma's bug were both parked out front. So where was she?

"Where's Emma at?" Regina asked, walking over to David's desk. "She's not at her desk."

David shrugged. "She probably went to the bathroom."

"She hasn't stopped to eat, I doubt she would have stopped to pee," Regina said, glaring at him. "I know that you know where she is. So spill."

David cleared his throat awkwardly. "She said not to tell you."

Regina rolled her eyes. "Of course she did. But last time I checked, you're her father and therefore have seniority over what she says. So, where is she?"

"She got a lead on the missing girl," David said. "And why the little boy lied. She went to investigate."

"David!" Regina scolded. "You seriously let her go alone?"

"Why, it's not like she can't handle it," David protested. "Besides, sometimes leads don't go anywhere."

Regina groaned. "Have you met your daughter? She wouldn't have left if there wasn't a possibility that this lead meant something."

David went to protest and then sighed. "Fine. She went to the mine."

"Of all places," Regina mumbled. "Why the mine?"

"Beats me," David said, shrugging. "That's where she said the lead was. And something about goblins. That's all I heard before she poofed away."

"Goblins?" Regina asked. "I think I've dealt with goblins once in my entire life."

"They're like ogres," David explained. "Watch your back or they'll steal from you without you even knowing."

"Thank you," Regina said. She poofed away without another word. What had Emma gotten herself into?

* * *

Regina walked cautiously into the mine, a fireball lit in her hand. This wasn't exactly the safest place that she had created, and now to find out that there might be goblins involved? Wonderful.

A shadow moved to Regina's right, and she turned quickly to illuminate whatever was hiding from her. Slowly, the boy stepped out from his hiding place. "You have magic?"

"I do," Regina said slowly. "Who are you? Are you the little boy that lied to Emma?"

The little boy looked down awkwardly at his feet. "I had to lie. The goblins told me not to get help, but I knew I had to get someone. My lie made the sheriff too curious."

"What did you do to her?" Regina demanded, stepping closer to the boy.

He looked at her with wide eyes. "Nothing! I swear! I just need her to help me kill the goblins!"

Regina looked at him skeptically before taking a step back. "What's your name? And who is the little girl that we're looking for?"

"I'm Curdie," the little boy said. "And we're looking for Princess Irene. She was captured by goblins, and the only way to save her is to kill them!"

Regina went to ask how they were supposed to kill the goblins when a noise sounded from farther down the tunnel. They both turned towards the sound, and Regina quickly pulled Curdie behind her to protect him. She got ready to throw her fireball, when Emma stepped into her line of sight.

"Regina?" Emma asked in surprise. "What are you doing here? And who's behind you?"

"I came to help you," Regina said. "And this is Curdie. I think that you'll find that he's the little boy who lied to you. With good intentions in mind, of course."

"Okay," Emma said, walking over and crouching in front of Curdie. "Where's your sister?"

"She's not my sister," Curdie said. "I made that up so that you'd feel bad for me and help. She's a friend of mine though."

Emma sighed. "No more lies, okay? Do you know where she is down here? The mine is a pretty big place."

"No," Curdie said. "I only know the layout of the mine back home. All I know is that the goblins took her to force her to marry their goblin prince."

"How old is she?" Emma asked.

Curdie thought about it for a moment before answering. "Eight."

Emma's eyes widened in shock. An eight year old should be playing with friends and being a kid, not having to worry about being captured by goblins and marrying some creepy prince.

"Emma," Regina said, freezing.

Emma was about to ask her if it could wait while she interrogated Curdie, but then she felt enough fear to make her spine tingle. Fear that wasn't hers. She looked at Regina, and then followed her gaze to the end of the tunnel.

A pointy-eared shadow stood in the light, its face hidden by the shadows of the rocks. They could hear it breathing, the air gliding through its sharp teeth. Every one of them stood frozen, afraid to move. Until Curdie shouted something that made Emma and Regina unfreeze.

"You have to stomp on their feet," he said, running towards the goblin. The goblin let out a scream of terror before turning and running away. Emma and Regina had no choice but to follow.

The goblin led them through so many tunnels that there was no hope of finding a way out on their own before they arrived at the goblin hideout. Instantly, Emma and Regina saw the little princess, tied up with a gag in her mouth. They had even dressed her in a little white dress for the occasion.

"Let her go!" Emma shouted.

Curdie made his way back over to them, hiding behind Regina again. "Yeah, let her go! You'll pay if anything happens to her."

The goblin queen laughed from her throne. "We will let her go that easily if you think, a fool you are. Yes, hrrrm."

Emma groaned. "Of all creatures we had to meet, we have to deal with one that talks like Yoda?"

"Who's Yoda?" Regina asked, confused. "Is that another pop culture reference that I won't get?"

"Later," Emma said. She turned her attention back to the goblin queen. "What do you want in return for her freedom?"

"Should do the trick a bottle of True Love," the goblin queen said.

"We don't just have that lying around," Regina protested. "How are we supposed to just get that for you?"

A servant goblin walked forward, holding a little bottle. He pulled out the cork before handing it to Emma.

Emma took the bottle and looked at Regina. "What am I supposed to do with this?"

"Rumple does hairs," Regina said, shrugging. "Maybe we just both have to put a hair inside."

"No!" the goblin queen shouted. "For those who are not strong enough for real magic hairs are. I require spit."

"Hell no," Emma said. "I am not spitting into a bottle."

"Please," Curdie begged. "We need to rescue the princess!" As if the emphasize his point, Irene struggled against her bonds.

Regina could feel the confliction of emotions that Emma was experiencing, so she grabbed the bottle and spit into it first. She shrugged before handing it back to Emma. "You weren't going to go, so I did." Emma rolled her eyes before spitting into the bottle and handing it back to the servant goblin.

"Very well, yours the girl is," the goblin queen said. She waved her hand, and two servant goblins untied the princess. She quickly got up and ran over the Regina and Emma, who each grabbed one of her hands. Together, they made a hasty exit.

* * *

"Case solved?" David asked as Emma and Regina walked back into the station.

"Not quite," Emma said, plopping down in her desk chair. "We have no idea what to do with Curdie and Irene. They're from the Enchanted Forest, and came through with the Curse. She's looking for her great-grandmother. He has no family."

"The great-grandmother can't be that hard to find," Regina said. "There aren't that many old women in town."

"We also didn't know that there were goblins in town either, and yet here we are," Emma argued. "What story are they all from?"

Regina shrugged. "Not one that I'm familiar with. I've never heard of them before today."

"I have," Henry said, walking into the station. "You said a princess was captured by goblins, and the little boy has no family?"

"Yeah," Emma said. "You know them?"

Henry nodded. "It's the story of The Princess and the Goblin. You're lucky that you guys got there in time to save her."

"But now what?" David asked. "How are we supposed to find the great-grandmother? She's obviously been missing for a long time, but no one has come looking for her."

"We'll find her the good old-fashioned way," Emma said. "Time to make some fliers."

 **So I don't really know what happened here lol. The Princess and the Goblin is an actual uncommon fairy tale story, and one of the few that actually has young children involved. As for the Yoda talk, that was an online translator. And before anyone asks, I'll be covering the blocking of emotions issue in the next chapter. Hope you enjoyed!**


	5. Blocking and Nightmares

**I'm baaack! Long time no see. It's been a crazy few weeks, but I owe you guys a chapter. Beautifullife0 asked for something with a nightmare, so this chapter is for you, love. Warning for mentions of abuse. Enjoy!**

"Are we going to talk about the fact that you blocked me?" Regina asked, walking into Emma's office and sitting across from her. "Because you were the one that wanted the connection in the first place, and I'm pretty sure the point isn't to shut me out."

"I didn't want to worry you," Emma said, setting down her pen. "I was just going to take care of things and then come back."

"And what, blocking me seemed like the easiest way out?" Regina argued. "I don't need your protection Emma, I can handle going with you on a case."

"That's not what I meant and you know it," Emma said. "Come on Regina, you can't tell me that if you were doing something dangerous you wouldn't want to worry me either."

"I can't help you if I can't feel what's going on!" Regina exclaimed. "You could have died down there and I wouldn't have known because you refuse to let me help you."

Emma sighed. "It's called not wanting to appear weak, Regina. I can handle going after a little girl in the mine."

"And when it's a trap and suddenly the mine caves in again and someone puts a magic cuff on you?" Regina asked. "Or when they sneak up and kidnap you, knocking you out? Where does that leave me if I can't feel you?"

Emma paused. "I hadn't-"

"You hadn't thought of that, yeah I figured," Regina snapped, standing up. "When you start to think about how your Savior status affects people other than yourself, come find me." She poofed out of Emma's office, not allowing her to say anything in response.

Emma's mouth dropped open in shock. She really hadn't expected Regina to actually be so upset about the goblin situation. Sure, she hadn't dealt with those creatures before, but she would have figured it out.

"What was that about?" David asked. "I thought you knew by now not to mess with her."

"Funny," Emma said, running her fingers through her hair. "She's just overprotective."

David smiled before sitting in the chair Regina had just left. "Can I let you in on a little secret?" Emma nodded, looking at him curiously. "She isn't overprotective. You're just so used to having to protect yourself that the idea of being protected seems like overprotectiveness. She just loves you, that's all. And we know how Regina loves."

"With all of her being," Emma mumbled, nodding. "I know."

"I'll handle things here," David said. "Go. You're not going to be able to concentrate knowing that she's mad at you."

"She's never mad at me," Emma said, putting on her jacket. "Just very frustrated."

David laughed and shook his head. "Same thing."

* * *

Emma had checked Regina's office first, but she wasn't there. All that Emma could feel from Regina was anger and frustration, plus worry. And as always, the little flicker of love that Emma always felt coming from her. No matter how bad things got, that little flicker would always be there.

She poofed to the mansion next, instantly smelling apples. Emma winced. Regina only baked things with apples when she was angry. She slowly walked into the kitchen, clearing her throat to alert Regina to her presence. "Hi."

"Hi yourself," Regina said, not looking up from the apple she was cutting. Quite violently, in Emma's opinion.

"What did the apple do to you?" Emma teased, walking forward and leaning on the counter.

Regina rolled her eyes. "Jokes, really? That's what you're going with?"

Emma sighed before walking around to Regina and wrapping her arms around her waist, resting her chin on Regina's shoulder. "I'm sorry. Blocking you out was not what I should have done at all. I was trying to avoid worrying you, but obviously it had the opposite effect."

Regina just scoffed, continuing to cut the apple. Emma sighed. "Regina Mills, please put down the knife."

Regina sighed before setting down the knife. "I don't know what you want me to say, Emma."

"So just listen," Emma said. "I can't help who I am. I feel the need to protect you because of everything that you've been through already. I know that I don't have to, but I want to. You are the love of my life, and I don't want you coming with me to the mine in case you get hurt. I blocked you because I wanted that to keep you busy while I dealt with the girl. But David had to go ahead and sell me out."

"Well I'm glad he did," Regina said, turning around in Emma's arms to face her. "How many times do I have to tell you, you stubborn woman, that you are not alone? We are a team, and protecting or not, you do not get to do things alone because you think it's better. Your judgement is lacking when it comes to getting help."

"Hey," Emma protested. "I'm not that bad."

"Sure you aren't," Regina said, rolling her eyes.

Emma smiled in relief as she felt the anger and frustration begin to melt from Regina. "Are we okay?"

"Do you promise not to block me ever again?" Regina asked. Emma nodded. Regina waited, smiling when she didn't feel any guilt indicating that Emma was lying. "Then yes, we're okay."

"Thank you," Emma said, smiling before kissing Regina. "I love you."

Regina smiled into the kiss. "I love you too."

* * *

Emma looked at Regina in concern as she got into bed later that night. "Why am I feeling nervousness from you? Something we need to talk about?"

"No," Regina said, continuing to just lay there staring at the ceiling.

"Nervousness and a little frustration," Emma noted, rolling over to face her. "And of course the underlying feeling of love that never goes away."

"Exhaustion, relief, and worry," Regina said. "Are we done naming what the other feels now?"

"You get defensive when you're deflecting," Emma said softly. She studied Regina closely, noting how she seemed tense even when lying in a comfy bed. "You're having a nightmare feeling, aren't you?"

Regina winced, giving Emma her answer. Emma reached over and grabbed her hand, squeezing it gently. "Just because you have the feeling, doesn't mean you're going to have a nightmare."

"I have one every time I get this feeling," Regina said tiredly. "With out without you sleeping next to me. It's not even worth it to try and sleep, I know what's going to happen."

"Says the woman who makes me sleep no matter what," Emma teased. "Hypocrite."

Regina smiled. "If I own the title, will you let me stay awake?"

"No," Emma said, leaning over to kiss her cheek. "But nice try. If you have a nightmare, we'll deal with it when it happens."

"We?" Regina asked.

"Now who's being the stubborn one?" Emma teased. "Stop distracting me and go to sleep."

"Wait," Regina said. "Will our connection let you see my nightmares, or just feel what I do?"

Emma shrugged. "No idea. Why? Something you don't want me to see?"

Regina just pulled the covers around herself tighter without saying another word. That didn't do anything but make Emma more nervous. Neither one of them had experienced nightmares so far during their connection. Tonight was going to be the trial run.

* * *

 _Regina sat in front of her mirror, studying herself. No longer did she look like the princess who had left home and still had her innocence. Now she looked like a grown woman. A queen._

 _She turned towards the sound of laughter from outside, getting up and walking over to look out at the garden. Snow was playing hide and seek with her father, making Regina's heart ache. She didn't understand why Leopold even needed to marry her. Snow didn't need a mother. She had her father._

 _Snow looked up and saw Regina, waving to her. Regina put on her brave face and waved back, determined to not show the princess and her father how they were getting to her. But as she glanced over at Leopold, she knew that she had blown it. And would be paying for it later. Hurriedly, she went back inside._

 _She sat back down in front of her mirror, trying to ignore the knot growing in her stomach. She tried to look past the fact that Leopold drank more than he should, and that he was probably drunk while playing with Snow in the garden. His kindness that everyone loved was really just his drunken state, but no one but the palace staff and Regina knew about it._

 _The door to her chambers opened, and Regina froze and seeing Leopold enter. She stood up and bowed to him as he walked closer, hoping that stroking his ego would lessen her torture. It didn't._

 _Leopold grabbed her arm strongly, making her wince. "What were you doing, spying on us? Or were you trying to plan another escape like last night?"_

 _Regina shook her head, opting to stay quiet. It was hard to tell whether he wanted her to answer the questions he asked or not._

" _So some other funny business then," Leopold growled, tightening his grip further._

" _Please let go," Regina pleaded. "You're hurting my arm. There's no need to resort to being to violent."_

" _No need?" Leopold spat. "No need? I'll be the one who decides that, not you. You don't get to tell me what to do. I am the king!"_

" _Yes, I know," Regina said._

 _Leopold glared at her before throwing her to the ground. Regina caught herself, preventing her head from hitting the floor. That had left a nasty bump to explain to Snow._

 _Regina jumped as Leopold forcefully grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. "I am your king. Don't make me have to tell you again."_

" _Yes Your Majesty," Regina said, freezing in place. The last time she had tried to get away from his grip, he had broken her arm._

" _And if you ever spy on Snow and I during out afternoon time together again, a bruised arm will seem like the least of your problems," Leopold said. Regina gulped and nodded, trying to ignore the prickling sensation of tears in her eyes. Leopold sneered at her before pushing her away from him and storming out of the room. Regina just curled up on the floor and cried, wishing for Daniel to come rescue her. Only she knew that he couldn't._

* * *

Regina sat up with a gasp, instantly feeling arms wrapping around her. "No, let go," Regina pleaded, struggling against the embrace. "Please I'll be good, just let go."

"It's just me," Emma said gently, slightly tightening her embrace to get Regina to stop struggling. "It's just me, you're safe."

Regina immediately relaxed at hearing Emma's voice, instantly melting into her arms. "I told you I was going to have a nightmare."

"And I told you that we would deal with it together," Emma reminded her gently. She rubbed her hand up and down Regina's back, hoping to soothe her. The feeling of fear that she felt coming off of Regina was so overwhelming that she didn't know how Regina was dealing with it herself.

They sat together in silence for a few more seconds before Regina spoke. "Well?"

"Well what?" Emma asked, pausing in her soothing movements to look at Regina in confusion.

"Did you see my nightmare?" Regina asked.

Emma sighed. She had been hoping that Regina had forgotten about that specific aspect. "Yeah, I did."

Regina immediately tensed. "All of it?"

"Yes," Emma said softly, resuming her soothing movements as Regina tensed even more. "Relax, we don't need to talk about it if you don't want to. You're safe."

Regina pulled away from Emma and got out of bed. "We need to go see Rumple and get this connection reversed."

"Why?" Emma asked, watching as Regina went to stand by the window. "Because I can see your nightmares? I'm sure that you can see mine too."

Regina shook her head, not saying anything else. Emma slowly got out of bed and went to join her, focusing on the emotions Regina was feeling. The most prominent one was embarrassment.

"Hey, look at me," Emma said gently, turning Regina towards her. "Nightmares do not make you weak. Seeking comfort after them does not make you weak. You are not broken. I am not going to suddenly be scared off by everything that you've gone through and leave. If anything, it makes me love you more because you've gone through all of that and you're still standing."

"I just want them to go away," Regina said, wrapping her arms around herself. "I'm so tired of having to experience those things over and over again."

"I know," Emma said. She gently pulled Regina's arms away from herself and replaced them with her own, hugging her tightly. "We'll work through it."

Regina sighed and completely relaxed. The comfort of being with Emma helped to calm her down, and made her feel as if one day the nightmares could go away. "Why do I have them when I'm with you? You never have them when you're with me."

"You've been having nightmares longer," Emma said simply. "Your mind needs more time to heal before it can be soothed simply by my presence."

"Are you insulting my brain?" Regina asked, smiling.

"No," Emma said, chuckling. "I love your brain. Except for when it gives you nightmares. My point was that you need to give yourself time to heal and move on from everything."

Regina sighed in frustration, pulling away from Emma. "Do you know how long ago those things happened to me?"

"And how long has it been since you actually talked about it?" Emma asked. "You can't expect yourself to heal when you don't talk about the issues."

"Since when are you a therapist?" Regina teased.

Emma rolled her eyes. "You are hopeless."

Regina shrugged. "Perhaps. But in my experience, talking about it makes it worse." She walked back over to the bed, sitting down on it and curling her legs under herself.

"Why?" Emma asked, following her and sitting next to her on the bed. "Don't you want to get it off of your chest? Vent about all of the horrible things that happened to you?"

"Talking about it makes it real," Regina said softly, looking at her hands. "If I just think about it as a nightmare, then I can blame it on my brain for being over imaginative, even though I know that what happened was real."

Emma looked at her sadly before pulling her close. They sat in silence for a few seconds before Regina spoke again. "I don't want your pity, Emma."

"It's not pity, it's sympathy," Emma said. "No one should have to go through everything you did."

"Sympathy and pity are basically the same thing," Regina argued.

Emma sighed. "Why do you need to argue everything I say?"

"Precision of words, dear," Regina teased. "It's very important."

"You and your queen vocabulary," Emma said, rolling her eyes affectionately. "Fine. Yes, I feel bad for you. But only because I love you and don't want to see you hurt. So deal with it."

Regina laughed. "Thank you."

Emma smiled and kissed the top of her head. "Anything for you."

 **This was so long, I'm sorry. But not really. Anywho, if you guys have a situation that you want me to put them in (like the nightmare) that focuses on their connection, let me know. Also, please take the poll on my profile page!**


	6. Memories

**Okay so the fact that Lana keeps posting throwbacks is not helping me any. I cannot with that woman. Anyway, this chapter is for LauratheChef who asked for a chapter with a good dream and Lovely1pyt who wanted to touch on Regina's rape. Because we all know that happened at some point. So, enjoy the fluff and not so fluffy moments.**

When Emma walked into the mansion, she was immediately on edge. For all the fuss that Regina had made about Emma blocking her, she had taken to doing it when she was having a particularly dark day. And Emma knew that today was going to be a very bad day.

There were certain things that had happened in Regina's life that neither of them talked about. Emma knew that certain things had happened, not by Regina telling her, but by the way Regina reacted to certain situations. Being locked in a room led to a panic attack, and being touched without warning usually led to walls going higher up than Emma had ever seen them before.

But since their connection had started, Regina couldn't hide those days anymore. Or her nightmares of these events. Emma didn't mind, and Regina reluctantly admitted that it helped her heal.

That didn't stop her from blocking Emma anyway once she had learned how to.

Emma had blocked Regina by accident, a response to not wanting to worry her. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't do it again. Somehow, Regina had figured out how to. And she was a master at it.

What clued Emma in to the bad day ahead was when Snow had come into the station earlier that morning with red rimmed eyes. David was quick to ask her what was wrong, and Emma immediately felt worry when she heard Snow admit that today was the day that her father had died.

But the biggest red flag was when she reached out to Regina and couldn't feel anything.

Mentally cursing, Emma had poofed to the mansion immediately, knowing that Regina probably hadn't gone to work that day. She knew that Regina hadn't felt any remorse over manipulating Sydney into killing Leopold, but anything concerning Leopold always brought up bad memories that even Emma couldn't chase away.

And so that was how she had ended up at the mansion, immediately on edge about where Regina was hiding, and how much magic she had put into shutting herself away.

When it was particularly bad, she used blood magic to lock herself in their bedroom. It frustrated Emma to no end when she took that approach because there was nothing that she could do. The one time she was desperate enough to reach out to Zelena to come and get in, Regina had burnt off Zelena's eyebrows. Now she refused to even come close.

Chuckling at that particular memory, Emma went upstairs and was surprised to see their bedroom door wide open. Regina wasn't in there. She wasn't in her study either, or the kitchen. Emma stood in the living room, utterly confused. Where else would Regina hide? Then it hit her. Regina had a vault.

And that vault was full of very dangerous things.

* * *

Emma walked towards Regina's vault, shuttering as she felt the magic pulsing off of the place. Regina had created a barrier, and a very strong one at that. Luckily for Emma, she hadn't used blood magic this time.

Regina had admitted the morning after her latest Leopold nightmare that her magic sometimes protected her on its own. While she would do the physical act of shutting herself away somewhere, her magic fed off of her emotions and created a very strong barrier. And as much as she wanted to be alone, Regina knew that being alone only made the feelings worse. So she had taught Emma how to get through her barriers.

Emma gently pushed against the barrier, sighing in relief when it didn't push back. Those were the ones that took more energy to get through. She pushed on the barrier harder until it formed a hole for her to enter. Emma quickly walked through, celebrating the power of True Love. No one else would be able to get in.

She quickly pushed Henry's coffin to the side and shuddered as she walked past the hearts that still beat. No matter how many times she entered this place, the hearts still creeped her out.

Regina was in the room with all of her various artifacts, staring into space. Emma checked her over, sighing in relief when she didn't see any damage that Regina had done to herself. Yet.

"You haven't hidden here in a long time," Emma said, coming over and kneeling in front of Regina. "I almost forgot that this place existed."

"I'm assuming if you came to find me, you know what today is," Regina said softly.

Emma nodded. "Snow came in to the station. I overheard her talking to David." They were silent for awhile before Emma spoke again. "Why are you blocking me?"

"For your protection," Regina said, shrugging. "You really don't want to know what I'm feeling right now."

"And if I do?" Emma asked. "You've been so good about letting me help you. Why stop now?"

"Because the particular memory that I'm reliving in my head is not one that you want to see," Regina said. "Trust me."

Emma shook her head. "When it comes to these things, you have to trust me. I want to know, because bottling it up inside isn't doing you any favors. I know what you did to kill him, we've already been over that."

"This isn't about what I did," Regina said. "It's about what he did, and why I killed him."

"For locking you in your room?" Emma asked.

Regina shook her head. "That was unpleasant, yes. But that's not why I can't be locked in a room. It's what he did while I was locked in there."

Emma looked at Regina, stuck in what she should do. When she was like this, she didn't want to be touched. But at the same time, Emma knew that being touched grounded her. Finally, Emma just decided to go for it, and grabbed Regina's hands in her own. She gasped as she was thrown into Regina's memories.

* * *

 _Regina paced like a caged tiger, trying the doors every time that she passed them. He had locked her up. He treated her like she was property he could own, and locked her up for something he had read in her diary._

 _Of course, that had been part of her plan. After all of this, she would escape the stifling life that Leopold had created for her, and get rid of the man who was wrapped around her little finger. Killing two birds with one stone. Literally._

 _Just as she was about to try the doors again, they flew open to reveal Leopold. Regina jumped back, trying to look as innocent as possible. The sight of him immediately brought dread upon her. She could tell in an instant that he was drunk, and him being drunk never led to good things for her._

 _He sneered at seeing her so close to the door. Of course he knew what she was trying to do. "Trying to escape?" he taunted._

 _Regina quickly shook her head. "No Your Majesty. I was just-"_

" _Stop talking," Leopold snapped. He reached out and grabbed her arm, not at all gently, and pulled her further into her chamber. He threw her onto the bed before motioning for the servants to leave the room._

" _Now then," Leopold said, leaning down and invading Regina personal space. He gripped her thighs tightly, prohibiting her from moving. "Time to show you who your real love is."_

* * *

Emma gasped, letting go of Regina's hands. She looked at Regina's face, immediately registering the horror that was there. So that was what she hadn't wanted Emma to see.

Emma had guessed just by the way that Regina reacted to being touched by anyone other than Emma or Henry that something had happened to her. But she hadn't expected it to be this bad.

"I'm sorry," Regina whispered.

Emma looked at her in surprise. "What in the world are you sorry for?"

"You weren't supposed to see that," Regina said, tears starting to gather in her eyes. "I don't know why you did, but I didn't want you to see what had happened, why I'm so broken."

"Oh Gina," Emma said sadly. She moved up to sit next to Regina, pulling her close and hugging her tightly. "You are not broken. Clearly our connection wanted me to see that so I can help. How long have you been carrying that burden around on your own?"

"A long time," Regina whispered.

Emma didn't say anything, but inside she was fuming. How could Leopold do that to Regina? She had been forced to marry him against her will, and that was how he treated her?

"I can feel your anger," Regina said softly.

"It's not directed at you," Emma said quickly. She noticed that she could feel Regina again, and was happy that all she could feel was comfort and love. For the moment anyway.

"Why is it getting stronger?" Regina asked. "At first it was just emotions, now we're sharing experiences from our past simply by touching?"

Emma shrugged. "Maybe it's getting stronger because we're becoming more connected to each other. As our bond grows stronger, so does the connection."

"Then why don't I see anything from you?" Regina asked.

Emma focused for a minute, thinking of the happiest memory possible that she had. Unsurprisingly, it involved Regina. While Regina had unintentionally shared her Leopold experience, Emma focused on their connection and pushed them both into her memory.

* * *

 _Emma took a deep breath as she walked towards the front door of Regina's mansion. She was supposed to be on a date with Hook at the moment, but she couldn't bring herself to actually go. She was tired of pretending to love someone she didn't, and was ready to admit her feelings to the person she actually had them for. Now she just had to hope that Regina felt the same._

 _She knocked on the door, mindful of the fact that it was almost midnight and Henry would probably be sleeping. Then again, that was assuming that Regina was in a place in the house where she would hear the knocking._

 _Just as she was about to reach for the doorbell, the door opened to reveal Regina. A very surprised looking Regina._

" _Aren't you supposed to be on a date?" Regina asked, not even bothering to greet her. They had known each other too long for that._

 _Emma shrugged. "I decided not to go."_

 _Regina looked at her in surprise before stepping to the side to allow her entry into the house. "Then by all means, come inside."_

 _Emma smiled at her before walking through the door. Here went nothing. "I'm going to break up with Hook."_

 _Regina's eyes widened as she shut the front door. "You're what?"_

" _Going to break up with Hook," Emma said shrugging. "No use staying in a relationship with a person you don't really love, right?"_

" _You stopped loving him rather quickly," Regina said, leading the way to the living room._

" _I realized something," Emma said, following her. She took a seat next to Regina on the couch instead of across from her like she usually would have done. And by the look on Regina's face, she had noticed._

" _What's that?" Regina asked._

" _I realized that I love someone else," Emma admitted. "And I couldn't keep pretending to be someone I'm not, and love someone I don't."_

 _Regina looked at her in confusion. "Why are you telling me this? Shouldn't you be telling the person you have feelings for?"_

 _Emma took a deep breath. No going back now. "I am."_

 _Regina's eyes widened. "Me? You, the Savior, have feelings for the Evil Queen?" She laughed. "That seems slightly ironic."_

" _Former Evil Queen," Emma corrected. "And yes. I do. I don't know whether you feel the same way or not, and if you don't we can just forget that this ever happened, but if you do-"_

 _Regina cut her off with a kiss. Emma immediately melted into it, marveling at how perfect it felt. Magic surrounded them, verifying that they were making the right choice._

 _They broke apart for air, and Emma smiled. "True Love's kiss. Guess you're getting that happy ending after all."_

 _Regina smiled back at her. "And what a perfect way to get it."_

* * *

"Our first kiss," Regina said.

Emma nodded. "I never thought that you would feel the same way. I was gearing myself up for rejection and then you kissed me."

"Please," Regina scoffed. "I felt that way towards you since the day you showed up. I just didn't realize it until you and your mother were sent back to the Enchanted Forest."

"So you didn't just save us for Henry," Emma teased. "I knew you were lying."

"Says the woman who sacrificed herself to the Darkness and wouldn't tell me why," Regina countered. "All of that happy ending bull you tried to tell me."

Emma laughed. "You're probably the only person I could never lie to."

Regina smiled before pulling out of Emma's arms and wiping off her cheeks. "Thank you. For the happy memory."

"I have plenty when it comes to you," Emma said.

"You know, we're quite a pair," Regina said. "We made this connection to help each other, and yet we try to find loopholes with it."

Emma laughed. "That pretty much sums us up." She reached over and grabbed Regina's hand, squeezing it gently to get Regina to look at her. "I need you to promise me something though."

Regina nodded, prompting Emma to continue. "No more blocking," Emma said. "From either of us. This connection is supposed to be so we can help each other, and we can't do that if we can't feel the emotions of the other person."

"Agreed," Regina. "No more blocking."

"Thank you," Emma said, leaning forward to kiss her. "I love you. No matter what memories you have."

"I love you too," Regina said. "Glad to know that I can't scare you off."

Emma just smiled. "Never."


	7. Possession

**Thank you guys so much for giving me plot suggestions. You're the best! This chapter is for TheReaderofGods who asked for a jealous or possessive Regina. Enjoy!**

"Is the blindfold really necessary?" Regina asked, holding onto Emma's arm. "I feel like I'm being kidnapped and held hostage."

Emma laughed. "You are so dramatic. And yes, it's necessary."

Regina sighed in annoyance. "You know that I hate surprises." She hated feeling like she wasn't in control. After being beat down by fate so many times, control was the only thing that made her feel safe.

"You'll like this one," Emma said confidently. They walked for a few more minutes before Emma triumphantly announced that they had arrived at their destination. She took off Regina's blindfold, and laughed at her utter confusion.

"We're in the middle of the forest," Regina said slowly. "Did you bring me out here to admire the rocks and trees? Or bird-watching, perhaps? You don't really have the patience for that one, but who knows."

Emma rolled her eyes. "No to all of the above. Just keep walking."

Regina huffed before continuing walking. "I swear if you brought me out here to go hiking-" She froze in place, completely in awe of the scene in front of her. "What is this?"

"A new stable," Emma said, coming to stand next to her. "I know you love horses, but the stable here doesn't exactly have the best memories. So I had a new one built." She smiled at Regina's shocked face before pointing down to the field. "And that horse right there is yours."

Regina followed Emma's finger and gasped. "He looks just like Rocinante."

"Had to get a little help from Snow on that one," Emma said. "She was the only one who knew what he looked like."

"I can't believe you did all of this," Regina whispered.

Emma's smile grew wider and she grabbed Regina's hand, gently pulling her down the hill. "Come on, the inside is even more amazing."

* * *

When they got inside, Regina was even more in awe of all that Emma had done. The stable was beautiful, and was fully stocked with all supplies and horses.

"I figured you could teach Henry how to ride sometime," Emma said. "You know, since he always talks about how he never got to experience the Enchanted Forest."

"You know how to ride?" Regina asked, looking at Emma in surprise.

"Of course she does," a voice said from behind Emma and Regina. "I wouldn't agree to help build all of this unless she went for a ride with me."

Emma shrugged. "It was an easy price to pay. Regina, this is Livia. She helped build all of this. Livia, this is Regina. The love of my life that all of this was for."

Regina smirked at seeing the little crack in Livia's happy face. Poor girl didn't realize that Emma was extremely oblivious to the romantic feelings of others unless it was stated. "Nice to meet you. Thank you for your help with all of this."

"Not a problem," Livia said. "I can give you a tour if you want. Or I'm sure Emma could. Although I wouldn't trust her with a map. She could barely read the blueprints of this place when I showed them to her." She winked at Emma, causing Emma to laugh.

"Okay to be fair, blueprints are really confusing," Emma protested. "Hardly anyone could read those things."

Regina glanced back and forth between Livia and Emma. "You two certainly spent a lot of time together to make this happen."

Livia smiled at Emma. "She was pretty determined to make things perfect."

Regina glared at her. "Emma, would you be so kind as to go get my jacket from the car? It's gotten cold in here rather quickly."

"Okay," Emma said, looking at Regina in confusion. "I'll be right back." She glanced between Regina and Livia before leaving to go back to the car.

The smile quickly melted from Livia's face as she saw the glare Regina was giving her. She may have been living out in the country, but she had still come from the Enchanted Forest and knew exactly who Regina was and what she could do.

"I can tell by your facial expression that you know who I am and what I'm capable of," Regina said, leaning casually against one of the stalls with her arms crossed.

Livia gulped and nodded. "Your reputation precedes you."

Regina smiled. "Good. Then I would suggest that before Emma gets back you leave." Livia went to speak, but Regina held up a hand to silence her. "Emma may be oblivious to your feelings, but I am not. So I would suggest you leave before I rip out your heart for flirting with what is mine."

Livia visibly paled before nodding and hurrying off. Regina watched her go, jumping as she heard a throat clear from behind her. She whirled around, smiling guiltily as Emma walked back into the stable, shaking her head fondly. "Really? Threatening the poor girl?"

Regina shrugged. "What can I say. I'm a possessive person."

Emma laughed before pulling Regina to her and kissing her. "Good. I like being yours."

* * *

 **Name challenge! First person to review the meaning of the name Livia gets to be featured in the next chapter! (Members of the website only, sorry guests. I need to be able to PM the winner)**


	8. Danger

**So this chapter is for three readers. Guest asked for a chapter with Regina in danger, which I am more than happy to oblige. I also had two winners of the name challenge. "Livia" is a Roman name meaning jealous (I have no idea what Xena even is for everyone who said that) and Raiatea1 was who got it right. However, rondaday1 made me laugh out loud during class at their review, so they also get a character. Enjoy!**

* * *

Regina smiled as she drove towards the stable. Ever since Emma had surprised her with it, she went every day that she could spare the time. In a way, it helped her connect to who she was before the Evil Queen had been created. A better person who had hope for a better future.

She parked her car and got out, smelling the familiar scents that only a stable could create. The stable hands were nowhere to be seen, but Regina didn't think anything of it. She was really the only one who visited, and she didn't mind getting her horse ready for the ride herself.

Her horse whinnied at her in greeting, and Regina smiled at the sound before stroking the animal tenderly. Rocinante had greeted her in much the same way, and it warmed her heart.

"You have a strong bond with that horse," a voice said behind Regina, causing her to jump. She spun around, seeing a girl that didn't look familiar at all to her. She must have been new, but she did have the uniform of the stable hands on.

"Yes, we seem to have made a connection," Regina said, turning her attention back to the horse. "He is a very special horse."

"Worthy of being ridden by a queen?" another voice asked, this time from Regina's other side.

Regina turned around, noticing how close to her that both girls seemed to be standing. "What is this?" she asked, her voice shaking slightly. "Who are you?"

Both of the girls mockingly bowed at Regina, causing her heart to jump in her throat. These girls knew who she was, and obviously had a score to settle. "My name is Olivia, and this is my sister Poehere."

"And what do you want?" Regina asked. She realized with a start that the girls had her surrounded, and there was no way that she could escape. Not without using magic. But if the ordeal with her other half had taught her anything, it was that magic wasn't in her favor.

"For you to come willingly," Poehere said, stepping closer to Regina. She held up the magic cuff that instantly made Regina freeze. That thing still haunted her, and she thought that she had gotten rid of it.

"Where did you get that?" Regina whispered, staring at the dreaded object.

"Master," Olivia said simply. "Now put it on."

Regina looked at them both before laughing. "Why in the hell would I willingly put that on and go with you?"

"Because if you don't come, Master will take Emma or Henry instead," Poehere said, waving the cuff in front of Regina's face. It was clear that both of the girls knew what Regina was going to do. So Regina made the easiest decision of her life.

She put on the cuff.

* * *

Emma was panicking. She had felt happiness and contentment from Regina that had quickly turned to fear in a matter of seconds. And no matter how many times Emma tried to call her, the calls rang and then went to voicemail.

The only time that Regina didn't have her phone was when she went riding, so Emma had grabbed her keys and left without an explanation to David. She was too worried to deal with him at the moment.

And then half way to the stable, the connection was gone. One minute Regina had been there, and the next she was gone. No connection at all. That did nothing but make Emma drive faster.

When she got to the stable, she immediately saw Regina's car. It was parked in her usual spot, and with a glance inside, Emma had confirmed her suspicions that Regina had left her phone in her car. She walked inside the stable, but was surprised to see nothing out of the ordinary. Other than the fact that Regina's car was there but she was nowhere to be found.

Emma supposed there was the chance that Regina had gone for a ride and had encountered something that had made her horse panic, and she had blocked their connection so Emma wouldn't worry about her. But then Emma noticed that Orva was still in his stall.

She quickly pulled out her phone and called Ruby. She needed someone with a better nose.

* * *

"She was here," Ruby said, sniffing the air.

"Well obviously," Emma said. "Her car is here." Ruby glared at her, causing her to sigh and look at her feet. "Sorry. Just really on edge about this whole thing."

"I get it," Ruby said. "I would be the same if Dorothy suddenly went missing and the only clues I had were an empty car and a horse still in the stable." She continued walking around, sniffing the air. When she got in front of Orva's stall, she froze. "There were two other girls here."

"Do you recognize their scents?" Emma asked.

Ruby shook her head, looking puzzled. "I have no idea who they are."

Emma mentally cursed. People always hid in the town and went after Regina when she was least expecting it. And their connection couldn't even help her since it was blocked somehow. "Did they leave a trail or anything?"

Ruby sniffed the air for a minute before nodding. "It's faint, but there still."

"What does that mean?" Emma asked. Ruby didn't look too happy about the news that she had just delivered.

"I means that they took her awhile ago," Ruby said. "And that we only have a limited amount of time before this trail is gone."

Emma nodded before taking a deep breath. "Let's get moving then."

* * *

Regina thanked fate that the girls had grabbed her from the stable. She at least had the footwear for the hike that they were going on. "Where are we going?"

"To Master's hideout," Olivia said, continuing to walk.

Regina rolled her eyes at that answer. "Who even is your master?" Neither girl answered.

They continued walking for awhile before Regina finally noticed the smell of saltwater that was growing stronger as they walked. They were approaching the edge of town. Finally, a little fisherman's hut came into few. The outside looked simple enough, not giving any clues as to who was waiting inside.

The three of them walked inside the hut, and Regina blinked a few times to allow her eyes to adjust to the sudden darkness. When she did, the people she saw in front of her rendered her speechless.

"I don't think I've ever seen her surprised before," Ursula said, smirking at Regina. "It's a good look on you."

"Anything looks good on her," Maleficent said, looking Regina up and down.

Regina shook her head to clear her thoughts before looking at the girls on either side of her. Then it suddenly clicked. "Flotsam and Jetsam." The girls mockingly bowed again.

"In disguise of course," Ursula said. "I couldn't have two eels slithering around town. That would give it away too easily."

Maleficent rolled her eyes. "Not to mention that eels can't survive out of water."

Before Ursula could reply, Regina spoke. "What do you want? Why bring me here?"

Maleficent and Ursula shared a glance before looking back at Regina. Without Cruella there, the Queens of Darkness didn't seem as strong. Even though out of all of them, Maleficent could handle her own.

"We need your help, and this seemed like the only way to get you away from your little protector," Maleficent sneered. "The magic cuff, before you ask, is to block the little bond that you two have. I didn't want her prying."

"How do you even know about that?" Regina asked, looked at them both in surprise.

Ursula rolled her eyes. "Please. Did you honestly think that you could connect that way with your magic and not send off some sort of beacon? Your powers combined is like a lighthouse to anyone who can feel magic. It calls from wherever you are."

Regina paused. She hadn't thought of that aspect. "What do you need my help with that Emma couldn't be involved in?"

"Lily," Maleficent said simply. "I thought that things were going well and that she would let go of her anger towards the Charmings, but I guess not. I found a hideout of hers where she's been planning her revenge this whole time. And it won't be pretty."

"I can't stop her," Regina said. "Believe me, if I could help I would. But what Snow and David did to her messed up her fate. She can't help herself."

Ursula sighed before gesturing to Olivia to get Regina a seat. She brought it over, and Regina sat down. "We know. That's why all three of us are here."

"Our magic combined can take her down," Maleficent said.

"You mean kill her," Regina said slowly. "You know as well as I do that removing magic from a person completely will kill them."

"A fact I'm all too aware of," Maleficent said sadly. "But it must be done. And you must help us."

"There was a reason there were three of us," Ursula said. "We need the magic of three people to take her down. Not to mention that your little boost of love magic will help."

Regina leaned back in her chair and smirked at them both before holding up her arm. "In case you haven't noticed, you've taken away my magic."

"We'll give it back to you when we get to where we need to go," Maleficent said, standing up. "Lily is contained for the time being, but she won't be for long. Not to mention that the Savior is on her way here."

"She is?" Regina asked.

"Along with a little wolf friend," Ursula said, standing up as well. "It seems we underestimated how resourceful that she could be."

Regina smiled before standing up. "She's not going to stop until she knows that I'm fine. Which she'll be able to tell as soon as you take this cuff off."

Maleficent and Ursula shared a glance before walking out of the hut. Regina groaned but had no choice but to follow them as Olivia and Poehere grabbed her arms and pulled her after the other villains.

* * *

"Is that a hut?" Emma asked as they got closer. She looked at their surroundings and realized that they were near the edge of town. Whoever took Regina didn't want to be found.

Ruby nodded before sniffing the air. She froze as two very familiar smells hit her nose. "Uh oh."

"Uh oh what?" Emma demanded. "What do you smell? Is she okay?"

"For now," Ruby said, shuddering. "But I'm not sure for how much longer."

Emma glared at her. She didn't appreciate the cryptic answers. "Spit it out, Ruby. Who are we dealing with?"

"I'm sorry," Ruby said, looking at Emma sympathetically. "It seems the Queens of Darkness have returned."


	9. Rescue

Ruby looked at Emma sympathetically as they continued walking through the forest. She could tell that Emma was struggling to keep it together, especially since she couldn't even feel Regina.

"Stop staring at me," Emma said, pushing a branch out of her way. "I'm not going to have a mental breakdown."

"You look close to one," Ruby mumbled, following after her.

Emma sighed, stopping and facing Ruby. "I'm holding it together for her sake. If I pause to have a complete meltdown, I don't know that I'd be able to continue walking. So yes, I am close to one. But I can't."

Ruby nodded. She understood where Emma was coming from. And if she was honest with herself, she wasn't sure that she could deal with Emma having a breakdown. For as long as she'd known Emma, she'd been a rock. She took whatever life threw at her, including the Darkness, and just dealt with it. But Ruby wondered if maybe the reason that Emma was so strong for the town was because she got to break down at home, with Regina by her side.

Lost in her thoughts, Ruby didn't notice that Emma had suddenly stopped. She ran into her, and was ready to apologize when she saw the look on Emma's face. Following her gaze, she gasped at the scene in front of them.

Regina was unconscious on the ground, surrounded by Ursula and Maleficent. The magic cuff was still on Regina's wrist, which frustrated Emma to no end. She couldn't tell what had happened.

Suddenly, Lily walked out from the trees, coming to stand in front of her mother and Ursula. "Why is she unconscious?"

"Because she won't willingly give away her magic," Maleficent said, a hint of impatience in her tone. "We've been over this."

"I don't see why I need her magic," Lily protested. "I have enough of my own."

Ursula rolled her eyes. "You told me that she would agree to this plan."

"She did," Maleficent said, glaring at Lily. "Regina's magic is a mix of light and dark. It's very powerful, which we're going to need if we're going to get our revenge on the Charmings."

Lily looked skeptically at them both. "I thought taking someone's magic kills them."

"Not if it's done correctly," Maleficent said. "It's just highly discouraged, hence why Rumple fed her the lie that magic cannot be taken from another without also taking their life. Since she has the cuff on, her magic is already centered in one place. All you have to do is take it from there."

"And she'll live?" Lily asked, staring her mother and Ursula down.

"Why does it matter if she lives?" Ursula scoffed. "She's a part of the hero team now."

Lily looked down at Regina. "Because Emma loves her. I ruined Emma's happiness a long time ago when we first met. I won't ruin it again."

Emma sighed in relief from her hiding spot. Regina wasn't going to die today.

"You are your mother's daughter, and yet you refuse to kill someone out of compassion?" Ursula taunted. "How weak."

"Don't speak to my daughter that way!" Maleficent shouted, turning angrily towards Ursula. "She has every right to be concerned about Emma. They were very close friends."

"We're close friends, and yet I couldn't care less if someone you loved had died," Ursula spat. "We are villains and therefore must not let love blind us."

Ruby nudged Emma to get her attention. "I thought that everyone was happy. Maleficent has Lily and Ursula got her singing back and went home. What happened?"

"If there's one thing I've learned from Regina, it's that villains always expect their happy endings to be ruined," Emma said. "Sometimes that destroys the happiness all by itself."

"What does that mean?" Ruby asked.

"It means that Maleficent still hasn't forgiven my parents," Emma said. "And if I had to guess, I'd say that Ursula figured that her place in the kingdom was just a plan to keep her under control and wants to show them that she can't be controlled."

Ruby looked at the group. "And Regina?"

"Wakes up every morning expecting me to be gone," Emma said softly.

Ruby looked at Emma in surprise. "You would never do that."

Emma smiled at Ruby. "I know that. Everyone seems to know that except for her."

Ruby went to reply, but her eyes were drawn to movement. "Emma, she's waking up."

"Oh no," Emma breathed, looking back towards the group. "Ruby, there's something that I need you to do."

"Anything," Ruby said.

"Go to Regina's vault," Emma said. "It won't be protected because she's not in it. You need to push her father's coffin to the side and follow the staircase. There's a room that has artifacts in it. You're looking for a mirror."

Emma finished explaining to Ruby what she was looking for, and Ruby ran off immediately. There wasn't time to waste. She turned her attention back to the scene in front of her, her heart jumping in her throat as she saw the three villains closing in on Regina.

"Do it," Maleficent commanded.

Lily shakily reached out and covered the cuff with her hand. "I'm sorry."

"I know why you're doing this," Regina said. "But you don't have to. I can tell that you've forgiven Snow and David for what happened. You're just happy to have your mother."

Lily froze. "I do have to do this. If I don't, she'll leave."

Regina looked at Maleficent in shock. Maleficent avoided her gaze, looking at the ground instead. "Hurry up Lily. We don't have all day."

"Not to mention that the Savior is probably getting closer as we speak," Ursula said, glancing around. She had sent her pets back to the hut, just in case Emma and her little wolf friend showed up there.

Lily focused on the magic that she could feel in the cuff. She took in a little bit, gasping as it went through her system. She released it back into the cuff, quickly backing away. "I can't take it."

Maleficent glared at her daughter. "Why in the hell not? You're stronger than this!"

"For the same reason you can't take it!" Lily shouted. "There's too much light magic in her, and not enough dark. If I take it, it'll do nothing but destroy me."

"The connection," Ursula said. "Her magic combined with the Savior's. It's more light than dark."

Maleficent growled in frustration. "How do we sever this connection?"

"Her death," Ursula said simply.

Emma couldn't take it anymore. She burst forward, standing in between Regina and Maleficent and Ursula. "I don't think so."

Maleficent and Ursula both took a step back at Emma's sudden appearance. Emma glanced over their heads and nearly sighed in relief as she saw Ruby position the mirror exactly where she had told her to.

Regina had told her the story of how she had sent her mother through the mirror to Wonderland, and Emma was more than happy to send Maleficent and Ursula through it. The only problem was that Lily could see the mirror and sell Emma out to protect her mother.

"There's only one of you and two of us," Ursula taunted. "I hardly think that you're in the position to stop us."

"Debatable," Emma said. She quickly raised her hands, using her magic to push Maleficent and Ursula towards the mirror. Regina and Lily watched as Ursula went through, while Maleficent struggled against Emma's magic. Regina was about to beg Lily to help her when Ursula reached back out of the mirror, trying to grab onto something to pull her back out. She grabbed Maleficent's arm and pulled, and they both disappeared into Wonderland.

Emma sighed in relief and smiled at Ruby, who smiled back. She turned towards Regina and Lily, both of who were looking at her in amazement. Without even hesitating, she walked over and pulled Regina to her feet before hugging her tightly. All of the recent events that had happened caught up with her at once, and her knees slightly buckled.

Regina gently held her up, hugging her back just as tightly. She looked over at Lily, who was staring straight ahead at the mirror. "Why didn't you warn them?" Regina asked her.

Lily shrugged. "I want to be better." She looked at Regina and slightly smiled. "I should go. Don't worry about Ursula's minions, I'll take care of them."

"Where will you go?" Emma asked, looking at Lily from Regina's arms. She wasn't about to let go any time soon.

"Mom and I had a little cottage out here in the woods," Lily said. "I'll stay there. Keep practicing my magic."

Emma nodded. "Stay in touch okay?"

Lily smiled and nodded. "Of course." She nodded to Ruby before turning and walking off.

"This needs to come off," Emma said, reaching over and pulling the cuff off of Regina's wrist. Regina gasped as she felt her magic return to her, sighing in relief.

Emma smiled, glad that their connection was back. She couldn't feel anything negative from Regina, oddly enough. Just relief.

Regina kissed the top of Emma's head and focused on their connection. "You're trying very hard not to fall apart right now."

"The woods aren't exactly the best place to freak out," Emma mumbled.

"Miss Lucas, I thank you for assisting Emma in finding me," Regina said. "If you'll excuse us, I do believe that Emma needs to be home right now."

"Don't mention it," Ruby said. "I can find my way back to the town."

Regina smiled at her before poofing herself and Emma home.

* * *

"Is Henry home?" Emma asked. She still had yet to let go of Regina, and she didn't really plan to. In fact, if she could, she would lock them both in the house and never leave.

"Most likely," Regina said. "School is out and he hasn't contacted either of us to let us know otherwise."

Emma nodded, still clinging to Regina. "Can you let go for about 5 seconds so we can walk to the living room?" Regina asked. Emma shook her head.

Sighing, Regina poofed them both to the living room before guiding Emma over to sit on the couch. They sat in silence, holding each other, until Emma finally broke. Regina rubbed her back soothingly and whispered calming words into her ear, just letting her get it all out.

Regina waited, never once stopping her soothing motions. She tuned into Emma's emotions, and eventually they turned from fear and overwhelming anxiety to contentment and comfort. She went to pull away, put Emma shook her head and held on tighter.

"Eventually you're going to have to let go," Regina said gently.

"I know," Emma said. "But for now, I just want to feel like we're both safe for a little longer."

Regina didn't say anything, just continuing to hold Emma close in her arms. They sat like that until the exhaustion from the day caught up with them, and they both fell asleep. When the morning came, Emma would let go. But until then, she was going to hold Regina as close as she possibly could.

 **And that concludes this story! Stay tuned for more!**


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